New options for fighting N.C. gangs?

At least they're admitting there's a gang problem here:

Law enforcement and civic leaders who gathered in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center said they faced similar problems: gangs that have been ignored for too long, that terrorize neighborhoods and recruit in public schools.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police have identified more than 150 gangs operating in the city with more than 1,800 total members, said Charlotte City Council member Warren Turner, who chairs the council's community safety committee. The governor's task force on gangs has identified 14,500 gang members across the state.

Darrel Stephens, the oh-so-politically-correct Charlotte-Mecklenburg police chief, has just the answer, and glory be, it's a pretty tough stance, at least for him. That is, part of his approach sounds sensible, which includes supporting legislation allowing seizure of property used in gang activities, and to add additional penalties for gang-related crimes.

But Stephens, being the political animal he is, knows how to play to the liberals, too:

Stephens said the state needed to make more of an investment, particularly to prevent children from joining gangs and to fix a juvenile justice system he said was "in need of a serious overhaul."

"We need to have an opportunity to intervene to help those who are involved in gangs to help them move away from that," he said.

Notice there's no mention that we're talking about Latino gangs. Also notice that all suggestions about what to do with these increasingly violent gangs involve an after-the-fact agenda. So there's nothing in the suggested proposals for stopping the flow of potential gang members by halting illegal immigration. As I've said before, with government, solutions are not the answer.

You can imagine my reaction when I read the final paragraph:

Civic leaders also discussed best practices -- things cities across the state and nation have done to fight gang problems. But one gang expert cautioned against programs that don't do enough to prevent gang membership among at-risk youth.

"It takes intensive work," said James "Buddy" Howell, a senior research assistant with the national gang center. "You can't fund a piecemeal program here and there and expect to heal the problem."

Yeah -- don't want a piecemeal approach. Heaven help us.